This was posted on Tuesday, September 12, 2017 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

Atlanta-based The Weather Channel, like its brethren down the road CNN, lives off breaking news. And hurricanes are its Super Bowl.

On Friday, as Hurricane Irma was bearing down on Florida, the network had its fifth-biggest day ever in total ratings, averaging 2.6 million viewers prime time and 2.1 million viewers the entire day. The only network to beat it that day was Fox News.

It's possible the network drew even more on Saturday, but Nielsen, which measures ratings, doesn't have those ratings out yet. Why? Ironically, its operations are out of Tampa, which was hit hard by Irma.

Its best hour Friday was 11 p.m. with 3 million viewers.

The network has been largely live for the past two-plus weeks thanks to both Harvey and Irma.

According to a New York Times story that came out this past Saturday, the network "averaged nearly 1.3 million viewers during prime time over the first half of last week, up sharply from an average of 150,000 viewers during the last week of July, when the weather wasn't a story, according to Nielsen."

About the Author

Keep Reading

Kevin Avery and Taylor Scott (left) were inducted into the Friends of Georgia Radio Hall of Fame. WANF evening anchor Shon Gables has been off the air for the past three months, but her general manager said she will be back. (AJC file)

Credit: AJF

Featured

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. (center) is flanked by GOP whip Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo. (left) and Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, as Thune speak to reporters at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, July 1, 2025. Earlier Tuesday, the Senate passed the budget reconciliation package of President Donald Trump's signature bill of big tax breaks and spending cuts. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Credit: AP